Madrid - Middle East quartet envoy Tony Blair will not be charged with mediating in the Middle East conflict, but with channelling aid towards the construction of a Palestinian state, European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana was Friday quoted as saying. Former British Premier Blair, whose appointment has been met with skepticism in parts of the region, will not conduct a peace process, the Spanish daily El Pais quoted Solana as saying in Lisbon.
Blair's task will be to mobilize political and economic aid, "will and solidarity" to create a government structure for a Palestinian state, Solana explained.
The current situation in the Palestinian territories, with the confrontation between Fatah and Hamas, did not make Blair's task easy, Solana added.
